The impassioned debate over vacation rentals in one of Marin’s tourist hubs reached a crescendo Tuesday night, when opponents turned out in force at City Hall and convinced Sausalito officials to back off a plan to legalize and regulate the industry — at least until the city proves it can quash the more than 150 illicit rentals already operating.

“We should prove to you all that over a period of time — let’s say a year — we can enforce the simplest of things: they’re banned,” Councilman Ray Withy, a staunch rival of the push to legalize vacation rentals, told the audience at Tuesday’s City Council meeting.

“If you can’t enforce a simple ban, I’m struggling still to see … how we’re going to enforce something of very significant complexity,” he said.

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City Council members considered a “pilot program” Tuesday night that would have overturned the ban on vacation rentals for one year and established a mosaic of regulations for the businesses. The program included requirements that rental hosts obtain licenses, be readily available to address complaints and limit whole-house rentals to 90 days per year.

The proposed regulations were meant to stifle the community’s concerns that short-term renters sometimes create nuisances and that the industry reduces the availability of housing for long-term residents.

But some argued Sausalito officials who supported the program were naive to think the city could enforce those rules when it already struggles to enforce a prohibition. According to Lilly Whalen, the city’s community development director, 157 Sausalito homes were listed on vacation rental websites when she counted Tuesday.

In October, when the City Council last fiddled with its short-term rental policy, council members agreed to step up enforcement efforts. They hired Host Compliance — a company that provides assistance to governments regulating or banning short term rentals — and expanded the role of Sausalito’s part-time code compliance officer, who now works three days per week instead of one. That officer is charged with enforcing all civil laws for Sausalito.

Three council members in October said they favored the pilot program, while two — Withy and Councilwoman Joan Cox — opposed it. The council postponed a formal decision, however, in light of numerous last-minute complaints and legal threats from community members. Sharpening the city’s enforcement tools, some said, was a smart move in any case.

Last night’s unanimous vote to abandon legalization came after Sausalito residents presented a petition signed by nearly 600 people opposing short-term rentals. The decision also followed heartfelt testimony from dozens of community members at the council meeting and more than 100 letters sent to City Hall — the majority against vacation rentals.

Proponents of the pilot program said it was the city’s best shot at creating a system that works for everybody. Vacation rental advocates say the businesses help residents stay in their homes by providing extra income and stimulate the economy by increasing the number of overnight tourists who might patronize local businesses.

“My guests eat out often and shop in the local shops,” said resident Beth Rowe, who hosts a short-term rental. “If we want a thriving and charming downtown we have to allow businesses that add support to the business community.”

Putting the issue of enforcement aside, some recognized that the city had worked hard to craft regulations that addressed many concerns about the undue consequences the rentals have on the community.

Mayor Joe Burns said the pilot program could lessen the impact of short-term rentals by requiring more government involvement.

“They’re here,” he said. “The plan was to reduce them.”

But for Withy, the program didn’t address one key issue.

“There’s a delicate balance,” he said. “Our good fortune of having a tourist industry needs to balance with the protection of residential neighborhoods.”

Many Sausalito residents echoed the councilman’s point. Resident Russ Irwin said the well-traveled city is a desirable place to live in part because it maintains small-town charm. Neighbors are connected and help each other out, he said. If the tourism that thrives downtown — where shops, hotels and restaurants are clustered — spreads into neighborhoods, he fears Sausalito could lose that.

Resident Jennie Wasser said replacing long-term neighbors with short-term guests could even be a safety hazard.

“If I wanted support from my next-door neighbor when I’m having a heart attack, I’m not going to knock on a short-term rental door,” she said. “I’m going to wonder where was my neighbor for so many years.”